Muffins, Marshmallows, & Marvelous Things

Posted on October 8, 2012 by kissmybroccoli

Happy Monday, muffins!

I have no idea why I just said that…I promise you are the fluffiest, tastiest muffins out there…not that I want to eat you…because well, who would read my crazy ramblings then?…oh and I’m pretty sure that would still be a form of cannibalism…

Unless you were a PUMPKIN muffin…then all bets are off! 😉

 Annnnnnnywho!

I hope you all had a MARVELOUS weekend! Mine was FANTASTIC and I just can’t wait to share it with you!

Honestly, I should have known the next few days would be filled with greatness when Friday morning’s breakfast looked like this:

Overnight oats…in a Cookie Nookie jar…topped with marshmallows!

I mean, seriously, the only thing that could have made it better was if, after my first bite, Lucky appeared out of thin air and granted me some wishes!

Leprechauns do grant wishes, right?*
*Yep, just Googled it…they do! 😉

Of course there was also a trip to the farmer’s market on Saturday:

Apples galore, acorn squash, pumpkin, cucumbers, green beans, and my latest obsession…Asian pears!

I may or may not have scouted out the perfect pumpkin JUST to be a prop for Sunday’s pancake post! 😉

And speaking of pumpkin, check out what I found:

Oh yes…good things are going to come of this…yes INDEED! 😀

For the record, I would like to have a pound of these kisses delivered to me on my deathbed…you can quote me on that!

But believe it or not, this weekend wasn’t ALL about food…

I got to hang with my bestie!

Since it only got up to like 50 degrees the other day (and we are both total pansies when it comes to cold weather), we opted for some fun indoors instead:

Yay for DYI mani/pedis! 😀

But the biggest highlight of this weekend?

I’ll give you a hint: Pumpkin Beer, Bratwursts, and BB!

OKTOBERFEST!!!!

I’ve been wanting to attend our city’s Oktoberfest for years now so on Saturday night, BB and I met up and decided to check it out. They had a HUGE tent set up, complete with live music, dinner and desserts offered from local German eateries, and all the beer you could want!

We had a great time singing, dancing, and of course stuffing our faces with plates piled high with mustard German food!

*****

I know a lot of you have been wondering why BB has been absent from the blog lately. The truth is, I wasn’t really sure how to go about bringing this up…until now. About a month ago, BB and I decided to end our relationship. This weekend was our first time seeing each other since then and while I was afraid it might be awkward, it really was quite the opposite. We had a night full of fun with plenty of laughs and we both agree that we will care too much for one another not to remain friends.

And that, my little muffins, is the MOST marvelous thing! 🙂

Now it’s YOUR turn…
Share marvelous things from your weekend!


Posted in Breakfast, International, MIMM | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 46 Comments

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes with Maple Yogurt Sauce

Posted on October 7, 2012 by kissmybroccoli

Good morning loves and happy Pancake Sunday!

A couple of weeks ago, a little Nerdy Birdy asked me if I could whip up a batch of pancakes that would satisfy her cravings for the wonderful flavors of fall, yet not leave her gluten-intolerant tummy upset with her.

No grain? No Pain? No Problem! 😉

Filled with pumpkin spice and EVERYTHING things nice, you’d never even guess that they’re grain free!

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes with Maple Yogurt Sauce

By: Heather @ Kiss My Broccoli

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10-12 minutes

Keywords: fry breakfast gluten-free grain-free high fiber coconut flour brown rice flour pumpkin Pancake Sunday fall

Ingredients (Serves 1)

For the Pancakes

  • 1/4 cup buckwheat flour (ground from buckwheat groats)*
  • 1/8 cup coconut flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon sodium-free baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/8 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon maple extract (optional)
  • 5-7 drops liquid stevia or other preferred sweetener
*Feel free to use any other gluten-free or glutinous flour to meet your dietary preferences.

For the Maple Yogurt Sauce

  • 1/8 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/8 teaspoon maple extract
  • 3-5 drops liquid stevia or other preferred sweetener

Instructions

For the Pancakes

1. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat and coat with cooking spray.
2. In a bowl combine flours, baking powder, and pie spice.
3. In a separate bowl combine egg, yogurt, milk, pumpkin, and extracts.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir well.
5. Spoon batter onto skillet surface, forming 3 medium-sized pancakes.
6. Cook 5-6 minutes per side flipping when edges begin to stiffen.
7. Top with maple yogurt sauce, toasted pecans, and dried cranberries.

For the Maple Yogurt Sauce

1. Combine all ingredients, whisk until smooth.

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Nutrition facts for pancakes, PRE toppings:

Now you can top your cakes with anything your heart desires, but really?

With a creamy maple-infused sauce like this…

Dripping down each pillowy spice-filled cake…

HOW could you turn away?

Oh Lord, I’ve gone and drooled all over myself!

Excuse me while I go change…and make another batch of these pancakes! 😉

What fall-flavored eats have you enjoyed this weekend?

Posted in Breakfast, Gluten-free, Pancake Sunday | Tagged , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

#FunFinds Friday

Posted on October 5, 2012 by kissmybroccoli

Yesterday my little foodie mind was blown.

I live in a small town…both geographically and minded. So a couple of weeks ago when I heard there was a little country shop across town that sold bulk grains, homemade spreads, and other fun things, I couldn’t help but be skeptical KNEW I had to check it out!

I couldn’t believe it…I drove all this way (20 minutes) and they wouldn’t let me turn my semi around! Sheesh!

But I HAD to forgive them the minute I walked through the door and spotted this:

Pick a jam any jam…you name it, they had it! Including some you wouldn’t think to name…

For the record, it’s a variety of muscadine grape…thanks Wikipedia! 😉

And the other side of the tower of jams? A pickled paradise…eggs, beans, okra, cauliflower…and with jams like “scuppernong”, you know they had more than just regular pickles:

Oh yes, this was MY kind of place! 😉

Whole grains, flours, baking mixes, sprinkles, homemade fudge, and…

LUCKY CHARMS MARSHMALLOWS?!!

I nearly had an aneurysm right there in the middle of the shop!

The store couldn’t have been more than 3000 square feet, but I still managed to spend over an hour walking up and down the aisles playing foodie paparazzi…somehow I managed enough restraint (only because I know I don’t have the space in my pantry) to get out of there for under 100 bucks.

Wanna see what I got?

Ta-daaaaaaaaaaaa!

Oh c’mon, you can’t seriously tell me your surprised about the marshmallows! 😉

The bulk of my purchase came from this little big guy but it was TOTALLY worth it…$40 for nearly a half gallon of organic UNREFINED coconut oil? I’ll take it!

And coconut flour for HALF the price as Whole Foods!

I also picked up some SUPER cheap wheat bran and some tapioca
(I have had the strangest craving for tapioca pudding and I wanna try my hand at making my own…we’ll see how that goes!)

Of course I couldn’t say no to the cinnamon pickles and the peach pecan jam practically jumped into my cart!

Yeah, these did too! 😉

And as if all THAT wasn’t enough…I just had to stop by TJ Maxx before heading home (in my defense, it’s on the way)

Of course the one I was MOST excited about was the spread!

So excited that I just HAD to find a way to incorporate it into last night’s dinner. So I roasted up half a kabocha (my fave) and stuffed it with cottage cheese, chickpeas, and the garlic and fig spread…

And then I figured, hell, why not add some cinnamon pickles and peach pecan jam too? 😉

Mind blown yet again!

Now about that title…join Kristin and me as we celebrate our awesome foodie finds! Just add #funfinds to any image you upload on Twitter and/or Instagram so we can all envy/drool over/devise a plan to sneak into your house and steal your goodies! 😉

What #funfinds have you discovered recently?

Anybody got any recipes for healthy tapioca pudding?

Posted in Friday Fun, Fun Finds Friday | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 34 Comments